On the 16th December 2011, Kazakh law enforcement officers opened fire on a group of striking oil workers and others who had gathered in the central square of Zhanaozen, a small oil town in Western Kazakhstan. 14 people were killed and many more were injured.

Afterwards the concequences followed, among them punishment of protest participants and trade unions closure. In this way the biggest trade union of the country Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Kazakhstan was closed.

Ten years after the tragedy human rights organisations and trade unions are still demanding the fair investigation and trial of the killings.